


The Boy Next Door

by CaptainSwanLuver



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Babysitting, F/M, Humor, Romance, Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-28
Updated: 2016-06-28
Packaged: 2018-07-18 20:48:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,070
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7330120
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaptainSwanLuver/pseuds/CaptainSwanLuver
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>17 year old Emma is the best babysitter in Storybrooke.  But when she’s tasked with watching the hot new bad boy next door and his younger brother, she soon realizes she’s never met a challenge like Killian Jones.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Boy Next Door

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for the responses to “Sweet Child of Mine.” This AU was written for the prompt Babysitting for the CS Hiatus Challenge on Tumblr. For the purposes of this fic, Liam is younger than Killian. Hope you enjoy it! ~Steph

...The Boy Next Door: Part 1/1...

 

Emma didn't like to brag. It wasn't who she was. But when people referred to her as the best babysitter in Storybrooke, she couldn't disagree. Emma was 17 now and had been babysitting since she was 12. She took childcare classes and CPR training to be as well prepared as possible. Emma had never met a challenge she couldn't handle.

But, then again, she had never met Killian Jones before. 

Killian's family had just moved to Storybrooke the month before. In the fall, he would enter his Senior year in high school, just like Emma. His house happened to be right next door to Emma's. She had certainly noticed when the handsome boy helped unload the moving van. But she had rarely seen him since. She would catch a glimpse of him in the backyard or driveway every once in awhile, but that was the extent of it. She wanted to introduce herself, but she feared she would dissolve into a mumbling mess.

Almost immediately, Emma had heard rumblings around town about the Jones boy. How he had been kicked out of his last two schools and how his widowed father had moved here from New York so he could attend a new high school. He was a bad boy for sure. As far as Emma could tell, he hadn't done anything violent. He just seemed to care little for rules or authority and simply acted as if they didn't exist.

It was a sunny day at the end of July, when Emma heard the doorbell ring. She went to answer it and found Mr. Jones standing at the door. Mrs. Jones had died 5 years earlier. They had moved to the U.S. from London shortly thereafter.

"Emma?" he asked.

Emma nodded. "I'm Emma."

He extended his hand. "I'm Mr. Jones. My boys and I moved in next door about a month ago."

Emma smiled at him. "Yes, I know. I'm sorry, I've been meaning to stop by and introduce myself."

He waved a hand in dismissal. "Oh, no worries." He paused and then began hesitantly. "I am sorry to just spring this on you, but I've heard you're the best babysitter in town. I have a gala to attend tonight and I need someone to watch my boys. I’ll pay you double your normal rate."

Emma's brow furrowed at the use of the plural boys. Killian was the same age as Emma. He shouldn't require a babysitter. His brother Liam was 9.

"I'm sorry. Did you say boys? Isn't your older son about my age?"

He nodded. "Yes, that's right, but Killian is...let's say spirited. I dare not leave him alone with Liam and it's best if he's not left unsupervised either. He tends to find trouble easily."

"Okay," Emma replied slowly.

His eyes lit up. "So you'll do it then?"

Emma bobbed her head. "Of course."

"I can't thank you enough. Please come by at 6."

"See you then," she said, as he bid her goodbye. 

Emma closed the door behind him, as a small smile played across her lips. She was finally going to meet Killian Jones.

...

Emma looked at her reflection in the full-length mirror. Usually when she went to babysit, she threw on an old pair of jeans or lounge pants, a t-shirt, and some sneakers. She would put her hair up in a ponytail and maybe apply some lip gloss. She didn't feel a need to impress kids under the age of 12. She did, however, feel a need - desire really - to impress the gorgeous 17 year old boy who would be there tonight.

So tonight, she put on a short, white skirt with a black and white striped tank. She strapped on a cute pair of white wedge sandals. Emma carefully curled her long, blonde hair and applied full make-up. She smiled at her reflection, before grabbing her purse and heading out of the house. 

A few minutes later, she stood outside the Jones' house. She took a deep breath as she raised her hand to knock. She was finally going to meet the hot teenage boy next door. 

The door swung open a moment later. Emma felt her knees go weak as she finally got a close look at Killian. He had the bluest eyes she had ever seen and his face was even more gorgeous up close. He looked older (in a good way) than his 17 years. She could even see a hint of scruff on his face. He had short, dark hair that was styled just the way she liked. She yearned to run her fingers through it.

Emma swallowed hard as her hand shot out. "Hi, I-..."

"Who in bloody hell are you?" he asked, as his eyes swept down her body appreciatively and he felt a smile twitch at his lips.

Killian knew exactly who she was. He had seen the beautiful, blonde girl next door. His bedroom had a great view of their backyard and he had often seen her sitting outside listening to music or reading a book. He wanted to introduce himself, but he didn't think she would be interested in a guy like him. She looked like a good girl and he definitely fit the bad boy mold.

His accent made him even sexier and Emma felt her palms grow sweaty. She suddenly realized that her hand was still frozen in midair. She slowly lowered it and brushed her damp palm across her skirt. 

"I'm, uh, Emma. I'm here to babysit you and your brother."

Killian arched an eyebrow and Emma thought it was just about the sexiest thing she had ever seen. 

"Do I look as if I require the services of a babysitter?" he asked, as his tongue slowly slipped out of his mouth and dragged across his lips.

Emma felt her breath catch in her chest. He looked like he had a very talented tongue and a mouth that could do wicked things. 

"Um, well, no, but your dad said-..."

"My father is mad. I don't need a babysitter and I can watch my own brother. That's what TVs are for."

Emma opened her mouth to reply but he slammed the door in her face. Her eyes widened and she suddenly felt the waves of lust that has initially consumed her give way to annoyance. His personality seemed as ugly as he was handsome. 

Killian didn't know why he slammed the door in her face. The last thing he wanted was the pretty girl next door to leave. Truthfully, he didn't know how to act around girls like Emma. He was used to girls responding to his bad boy charm. Emma didn't seem like the kind of girl that would work on.

She clenched her jaw and rang the doorbell several more times, then pounded on the door with her fist. A moment later the door swung open again, revealing Mr. Jones.

"Apologies," he said, as he glanced at Killian by his side. "My son seems to have forgotten his manners."

"It's okay," Emma said, as she crossed the threshold and leveled Killian with a glare. 

Mr. Jones gestured to the little boy who stood next to Killian. He looked like a miniature version of his brother, just with lighter, curly hair. 

"This is my younger son, Liam."

Liam smiled brightly and extended his hand. "Pleasure to meet you."

Emma shook it, as Mr. Jones nodded. "Now those are the manners I expect."

Killian rolled his eyes, which did not go unnoticed by Emma.

"Emma, I left my number on the refrigerator and some money on the counter to order pizza." He looked at his sons. "You two be good." He focused solely on Killian. "I expect you to behave like gentlemen."

Killian couldn't stifle his snicker. Mr. Jones offered him a steely glare and then headed out the door.

"Thank you, Emma," he called over his shoulder.

Emma closed the door behind him and then crossed her arms over her chest. 

"Let's get something straight," she said, as she looked at them both. "I am a great babysitter and I have a reputation to uphold. You two aren't going to ruin it."

Liam shrugged. "Okay," he replied and ran off.

Killian, however, inched closer to her until he was so close she could smell him - an intoxicating mixture of mint and evergreen and the ocean.

"Perhaps I was mistaken before," he said, drawing his words out slowly. "Perhaps I do require your services."

His eyes darted down to Emma's lips. Normally, such a line would work on the girls Killian was used to and Emma had to work overtime to not let her attraction to him show.

She managed to hold his gaze. "I'm sure your brand of charm works on most girls, but I'm not most girls."

Killian shook his head and whispered, "You are decidedly not."

Emma felt her heart begin to beat wildly in her chest, as he brought his hand up to twirl a lock of her hair between his fingers. She forced herself to pull away from him and turned on her heel in search of Liam.

Killian watched her go, not realizing his own breath had frozen in his chest until she had disappeared from view.

...

Emma searched the entire first floor for Liam. She was in the process of climbing the stairs to the second floor when she smelled smoke. Her eyes widened in alarm. She ran the rest of the way up the stairs and then hurried to the room at the end of the hall. 

She found Liam in his bedroom waving his arms wildly. On his desk was a chemistry set with vials of liquid. He had a bunsen burner beneath one of the vials. It had caused the liquid in the vial to bubble up and spill out onto the desk. Some of the liquid had made contact with the flame and a small fire was now brewing. Smoke had begun to fill the room.

“What did you do?” she screamed at Liam.

“I was just experimenting!” 

Emma stood frozen to her spot for a moment. Suddenly, the fire alarm began to blare. She always made it a point to know where the fire extinguisher was in every home she babysat in, but there hadn’t been time to ask Mr. Jones today.

“Where does your dad keep the fire extinguisher?” she asked him.

“I don’t know,” he said with a shrug.

Emma ran from the room and headed toward the bathroom. A quick search of it came up empty. She sprinted downstairs into the kitchen and searched the cabinets. She finally found one and ran back upstairs. She was normally calm, cool, and collected in a crisis, but she felt her hands shaking as she struggled with the fire extinguisher. Suddenly, she felt a spray come from behind her. White foam spewed forth, covering the fire and her. Her mouth hung open as she felt her hair and back become soaked. 

She slowly turned around to find a smirking Killian. He didn’t say a word as he walked to the fire detector and tapped the button to silence it. He came back to stand before her, as Liam stared at his failed experiment dejectedly.

“You’re welcome, milady,” he said and winked at her.

She swallowed roughly. “I didn’t need your help. I had it under control.”

He bobbed his head. “That was certainly apparent from the smoke, the alarm, and your losing battle with the fire extinguisher.”

She felt her jaw tighten. “The fire extinguisher was jammed or something. I almost had it.”

He shrugged. “No need to thank me. I’m always willing to assist a damsel in distress. It’s good form.”

“I had no intention of thanking you for drenching me in white foam. And I’m not a damsel and I certainly wasn’t in distress.”

“Whatever you say, love,” he replied.

Emma felt her heart skip a beat at his use of the word ‘love’. She shook her head and looked at Liam.

“What were you doing playing with these dangerous materials? Where did you even get this stuff?”

“I ordered it online,” he said with a shrug. “My father’s Amazon password is extremely easy to guess, even after he changes it.”

Killian smirked at her. “I see my father warned you about me, but failed to properly inform you about my brother. Liam likes to experiment and he won’t stop, despite repeated groundings and confiscation of his supplies.”

Emma’s eyes narrowed at Liam. “Clean this up. Now.”

Liam sighed and left in search of cleaning materials. 

Killian offered her a smug grin. “I know I said no need to thank me, but I do believe I just helped preserve your pristine babysitting reputation. What would happen if such an incident got out? Your lucrative babysitting offers would probably dry up.” He paused and then added, arching an eyebrow and focusing on her lips, as he invaded her personal space. “Perhaps gratitude is in order.”

Emma felt her breath hitch in her chest as her own eyes moved to his full lips. She knew he must be an amazing kisser. She leaned closer to him, her lips an inch away from his, as her eyes darted back up to meet his. 

“Help your brother clean this mess up,” she said simply, before walking past him.

Killian’s grin widened as he turned to watch her go. Emma stopped outside the room and leaned up against the wall, as she tried to calm her breathing and steady her racing heart. She didn’t know what had gotten into her. No boy had ever had such an effect on her before.

…

Emma closely supervised the cleaning of Liam’s room. Soon, all evidence of the near disaster was gone, except for a slight smell of smoke, which Emma hoped would eventually dissipate with her repeated use of air freshener. 

Once done, she headed home to quickly clean herself up and change. She hoped the house would still be standing when she returned. This time, she came back wearing an old pair of jeans and a simple white t-shirt with flip flops. 

Emma headed into the kitchen to order pizza for dinner. She walked to the counter and looked for the money Mr. Jones said he had left. The counter was empty. Her brow furrowed, as she looked on the floor to see if it had fallen. She then moved to the kitchen table to see if it was there. After a thorough search of the kitchen did not turn up any money, Emma squeezed her eyes closed and groaned. 

“Liam! Killian! Get in here!”

The boys arrived a moment later, the pictures of innocence.

“You bellowed?” Killian said.

Emma gestured to the counter. “Your father said he left money on the counter for pizza. Where is it?”

“I don’t know,” Liam said.

“However would we know? We’re not the babysitter. That was your responsibility,” Killian said. “Frankly, I’m not all that impressed with your babysitting skills. I may have to give you a negative review on Yelp.”

Emma’s eyes narrowed at him. “I know you took it.” She held her hand out as she came to stand before him. “Give it to me.”

“I’ll give you anything you want, love,” he said, once again invading her personal space.

Emma swallowed hard and then shook her head to refocus. “I’m not kidding, Killian.”

He stretched his arms out to the side and grinned, his voice lowering in a seductive manner that no 17 year old boy should be capable of. 

“Feel free to search me. Give me a good pat down. Don’t be afraid to really get into it. I think that’s something we would both enjoy, don’t you agree?”

He licked at his lips then and Emma almost fell over. She forced herself to take a step back and Killian tried to hide his disappointment.

“You are a pig,” she said.

“I was simply trying to clear my good name. I am an innocent man,” he said.

Emma scoffed at that. “I hardly think that’s true. I’ve heard the rumors about you.”

Killian shrugged. “You know what they say about rumors. They are carried by haters, spread by fools, and accepted by idiots. You shouldn’t believe everything you hear, love.”

Emma nodded. “I see. So you didn’t get thrown out of your last two schools then?”

He bobbed his head. “Oh, I most certainly did.”

“But you’re not a so-called bad boy?”

Killian cocked an eyebrow and nearly closed the distance between them again. “Define bad,” he said softly.

Emma felt her knees go weak again. Killian’s heart began to race as he was so close he could smell her fruity shampoo.

The words hung in the air for a few long moments until they heard a throat clear from below them. 

“I’m starving. Are we going to get dinner or what?” Liam asked.

They tore their eyes away from each other and looked down at him. They had forgotten he was even there. Emma’s mouth dropped open as she saw his outstretched hand holding a twenty dollar bill.

“You took the money?” she asked.

Liam shrugged his shoulders. “I wanted to buy some more supplies to experiment with. But after today I think I’ll take a little break.”

Emma snatched the money from him. “Good choice. Bad choice to steal.”

He nodded and headed out of the kitchen. 

Killian chuckled. “Good life lesson there, Emma. I’m certain he’ll change his ways.”

Emma raised her brow at him. “He’s young. There’s still hope for him.”

“Hey, I told you I was an innocent man and I was proven right,” he said with a grin. “I believe that should count for something.”

“Innocent of this crime,” she said and then walked out of the kitchen as his laughter followed her.

…

They ate their pizza without incident. Killian finished and stood up from the table.

“May I be excused?” he asked. 

“So now you’re a gentleman?” she said.

“I’m always a gentleman,” he replied with a cock of his head. 

“I’ve only seen evidence to the contrary,” she countered. 

“I’m going to take that as a yes,” he said, as he walked to the sink and placed his plate in it. 

He disappeared a moment later. Liam stared at her as he chomped on his crust. She felt her cheeks begin to burn under his gaze.

“What?” she asked, as she brushed at her mouth with her napkin. “Do I have sauce on my face or something?”

“He fancies you,” he said simply through a mouthful of pizza.

Emma felt her cheeks redden more, as she pushed a piece of hair behind her ear self-consciously. 

“What? No, he doesn’t.”

“Aye, that he does. I know my brother. Usually, it doesn’t take much more than a smile in their direction for him to get a lass. But you’re different. He’s working overtime to impress you.”

“How old are you again?” she asked. She paused and shook her head. “You’re wrong. I am not your brother’s type.”

“Precisely,” he replied, before popping the rest of his crust into his mouth. 

Emma dropped her eyes back down to her plate. 

…

Emma left Liam playing on his iPad in the living room and went in search of Killian. She hadn’t seen him since dinner and it was way too quiet. She climbed the stairs and found his room next to Liam’s. The door was closed, which only raised her suspicions. She slowly turned the knob, expecting to find it locked. She was surprised when it turned easily and the door swung open. She surveyed his room and found him lying on his bed reading a book. 

She came to stand beside his bed, as his gaze moved from the book to her. 

“I’m not allowed to have lasses in my room. As the babysitter, you should really know that.”

She planted her hands on her hips. “What are you up to?” she asked.

He held the book up. “What does it look like?” 

“It looks like you’re trying to manipulate me into thinking you’re not up to something, so that I will be lulled into a false sense of security.”

“Perhaps I just enjoy reading. You really do have quite the suspicious mind, Emma. You might want to try something new. It’s called trust.”

Emma scoffed at that. “Trust is earned.”

He sat up on the bed and faced her. “And what exactly have I done that is so wrong? Was it putting out the fire? Or defending myself against your false accusations of theft?”

Emma suddenly felt a little guilty. He really hadn’t done anything wrong, aside from some aggressive flirting. He stood up then and came close to her. 

“You know, you really shouldn’t judge people before you get to know them,” he said, his eyes flitting across her beautiful features. “It can cause one to make some poor assumptions. For instance, if I were to judge you before getting to know you, then I would assume that you are uptight and judgmental. How would you feel about that?”

Emma swallowed around the lump in her throat. “I’m...not,” she said softly.

“Precisely,” he said, before throwing himself back onto his bed and picking up his book. “Now if you don’t mind, I was trying to read before I was so rudely interrupted.”

“Sorry,” Emma muttered, as she backed out of the room and closed his door.

She had made it halfway down the hall when she stopped dead in her tracks. Something was wrong. She could feel it. And then it hit her. It was his window. It was open, just a crack. Not enough to get a breeze, which would be unnecessary anyway since the house had central air. 

She spun around and hurried back down the hall. She flung the door open just in time to spot Killian with one leg out the window. 

“I knew it!” she said. 

He offered her a wide grin and threw his hands up in the air. “Caught me red-handed.”

“Where exactly do you think you’re going?” she asked.

“I’m going to assume you won’t believe the library.”

“You are very perceptive.”

“A new friend down the street invited me over for a party,” he said with a defeated sigh. 

“Well, you can just forget it. Your father said I had to keep an eye on you. Obviously, I can’t take my eyes off you for a second.”

Killian smiled at her as he climbed back out of the window and walked past her. “I would despair if you did.”

Emma sighed and followed him down the hall. 

“Downstairs with your brother now,” she ordered.

“Feisty, I like that. Very authoritative.”

“Actually, I’ve heard you’re not a fan of authority or rules,” she said as they walked down the stairs. “I can see those particular rumors were true.”

He flashed her a grin. “Quite.”

…

“Permission to use the loo,” Killian said, his hand shooting up from his place on the couch. 

Emma loathed using the TV as a babysitter but she felt it was called for in this particular situation. 

She rolled her eyes. “You don’t have to raise your hand,” she said.

He stood and came to stand in front of her chair. “I wouldn’t want to risk breaking anymore rules.”

“Permission granted,” she replied, as she offered him a close-mouthed smile. 

“Thank you, milady,” he said, as he headed to the bathroom.

Emma followed after him. He glanced over his shoulder as he entered the bathroom. 

“As pleasant as your company is, I prefer to do this particular activity alone, if you don’t mind,” he said.

Emma crossed her arms over her chest. “I’ll be waiting right here. You have two minutes. Don’t lock the door.”

Killian sighed and shut the door. Emma put her ear to the door and listened. After a minute, she heard the water run. Two minutes passed and the water was still running. She knocked on the door.

“Time’s up, Killian!” she shouted.

When the door didn’t open and he didn’t respond, she flung it open and found the bathroom empty. She saw the window open, the curtains blowing in the summer breeze. She ran to the window just in time to see her yellow bug leave her driveway next door. 

“Damn it! He stole my car!”

Emma spun around at the sound of laughter behind her. Liam stood in the doorway.

“Your brother stole my car!”

“Aye, he does that. You didn’t fall for that climbing out the window of his bedroom routine, did you? He always pulls that once, making sure he gets caught, so the babysitter thinks he won’t try the same trick again.”

“Thanks for telling me that now,” she said through gritted teeth.

“He doesn’t even have a license,” he added.

Her eyes widened. “What?!”

“He said it seems unnatural driving on the right side of the road.”

Emma squeezed her eyes closed. “That’s reassuring. We need to find him now.”

“How? He stole your car.”

“We can take my mom’s car. My parents are out of town for the weekend and my mom’s keys are at my house.”

“I hate to point out the obvious, but if he stole your car, then he also stole your keys. I’m going to assume your house keys were also on there.”

Emma groaned. He was right. And her parents hated the whole hide-a-key thing. 

She sighed. “I’m going to have to break-in.”

“Bloody brilliant!” Liam said.

…

Emma stood on her back porch and stared at the sliding glass door. Her parents were going to kill her. She picked up a rock and threw it through the glass. Their alarm immediately started blaring.

“Awesome,” Liam said.

Emma carefully stuck her hand through the glass and unlocked the door. She ran inside and tapped the code into the panel. She then quickly located her mother’s keys by the front door. Liam followed Emma into the garage and they climbed into her silver Ford Escape. 

“Any idea where he is going?” Emma asked, as she started driving. “He said something about going to a friend’s house down the street, but that doesn’t require a car.”

Liam laughed. “Is that what he told you? He’s going to New York.”

“What?!” she screamed, as she glared at him. “How do you know that?”

“Because that’s where we moved from and he really misses it. My father’s already found him at the bus station three times since we moved here,” Liam said. 

“Do you think that’s where he is now? Or does he really plan on driving my car all the way to New York?”

“I’d check the bus station first.”

“I don’t understand this. He didn’t even have a bag with him.”

“Probably stowed it away in the bushes. That’s what he usually does.”

Emma quickly drove to the bus station. She didn’t spot her car anywhere in the lot, but ran inside anyway. She and Liam searched the entire station, but didn’t find him. They returned to the car and Emma dropped her head onto the steering wheel.

“This is a disaster. Your father is going to kill me. My father is going to kill me.” 

She sighed heavily, finally lifted her head, and started the car. 

“Let’s go home. Maybe by the time I get there I’ll have gathered the courage to call your dad.”

…

Emma approached her driveway, her brow furrowing at her yellow bug sitting in it. 

“What the hell?” she said.

She pulled her mother’s car up alongside hers. She peered out the window into her car, but didn’t see Killian in it. Liam and Emma exited the car and headed to the Jones’ house. 

They were shocked to find Killian sitting on the porch. 

Liam patted his brother on the shoulder as he walked inside. “Good luck,” he whispered.

Emma placed her hands on her hips. “What the hell were you thinking? You don’t even have a license. You could have killed someone.”

“I’m sorry,” he muttered, his head hanging dejectedly, eyes unable to meet hers.

“Are you going to tell me you’re innocent again? That you’ve committed no crime? Because I can think of a bunch you committed! I could-...”

“I said I’m sorry!” he screamed, as he raised his head and met her eyes.

Emma jumped at the sound of his voice, her mouth snapping shut. She met his gaze, surprised to find tears filling his eyes. She took a calming breath and sat down beside him.

“Why did you do it?” she asked softly.

“Why do you care?” he replied, his eyes rooted to the ground. 

“I just do, okay?”

Killian swallowed hard and forced himself to meet her gaze. “I hate it here,” he said.

“It’s only been a month. You need to give yourself time to adjust.”

“No,” he said. “Here in the states.”

“Oh,” Emma replied, her eyes widening. “Liam said you were going back to New York because you missed it.”

He shrugged. “I was. And then I was going to get on a plane and go back to London. I’ve been saving money for a plane ticket for the last five years.”

“Why do you hate it here so much?” she asked.

KIllian met her eyes again. “It’s not home. My father only brought us to the states because he thought it would help us move on after my mum’s death. But all it did was make it feel like he was trying to forget her. And not only did we have to deal with losing our mother, but leaving all of our friends, our family, our home, while trying to adjust to a new country.”

“I’m sure that was really hard.” She paused and licked at her lips, before she began hesitantly, “Is that why you are the way that you are?”

Killian arched an eyebrow and offered her a little smile. “And how am I exactly?”

She waved a hand at him. “You put on this charming bad boy act. But that’s what it is, isn’t it? An act.”

Killian shrugged. “I suppose. In New York, I just wanted to fit in. The lasses seemed to like the so-called bad boys, so I started to act like them. We would act up in class, pull pranks. Nothing serious.”

“How did you get thrown out of two schools then?” she asked.

Killian let out a breath. “Sometimes pranks go too far. Principals don’t take kindly to you filling their car with Jello. Or removing all of the furniture from their office and putting it on the football field.”

Emma lifted her hand over her mouth to keep from laughing. 

“Don’t,” he said softly, his eyes drifting across her face.

“Don’t what?” she asked.

“Don’t stop yourself from laughing. You’re even more beautiful when you laugh, Emma,” he said softly. “When you let your guard down.”

Emma swallowed hard, the look in his eyes and the tone of his voice making her mouth dry. “I guess I’m guilty of being someone I’m not sometimes too. My parents expect a lot from me. They want me to get straight A’s and join all of these clubs, so I can get into an Ivy league school. My father grew up poor and he worked like hell to get where he is today. He owns his own computer software company and my mom helps him run it. I’m really proud of him, proud of them both. And I want them to be proud of me too, but sometimes it’s just-...”

“Too much pressure,” he stated for her.

Emma nodded, their gaze holding. “Yeah. Sometimes, I just want to relax and let loose. Have some fun.”

Killian licked at his lips as he moved closer to her. “I can show you fun, love,” he said.

“I bet you can,” she replied in a breathy whisper. 

His lips neared hers and they had nearly met, when she shook her head and pulled back. Killian released a disappointed sigh.

“Um, why did you come back? You never said,” she asked, as she tried to control the shaking in her voice.

His eyes swept across her face again, as he replied softly. “I came back because of you, Emma.”

Emma’s eyes widened. “Me?”

Killian nodded, as he held her gaze. “I finally found a reason to stay,” he said. 

Emma’s breath caught in her chest at his words. He lifted his hand to caress her cheek, as his lips neared hers again. He looked into her eyes for any sign of hesitation but found none. This time, she didn’t pull back. 

His lips met hers and Emma was grateful she was sitting because she was sure that her knees would have given out at his touch. She lifted her hand and cupped the back of his head, threading her fingers through his hair and deepening the kiss. Killian’s tongue swept into her mouth, catching her off-guard for a moment but she quickly responded. 

He pulled back a moment later and rested his forehead against hers, his tongue swiping at his lower lip to taste her again.

“I think you just earned a positive review on Yelp,” he said. “Now I can see why you come so highly recommended.”

Emma laughed. “Shut up and kiss me,” she said.

“See, love, I do know how to follow orders,” he replied, as his lips met hers again.

…

Mr. Jones returned an hour later. Liam was in bed and Emma and Killian were on the couch watching TV. They had been engaging in a lengthy make-out session before they heard his car pull up. They had quickly separated and flipped the TV on. 

He entered the living room. “How did everything go, Emma?”

Emma smiled, as she and Killian stood. “Great. A completely uneventful night.”

“Good. I hope my boys behaved.”

Emma looked at Killian. “Nothing I couldn’t handle,” she said.

Mr. Jones eyed them as their gazes held. “Glad to hear it.”

He stepped forward and held some money out to her, but Emma shook her head. “First one’s on the house.”

“Are you positive?” he asked.

She nodded. “Yes.”

Killian smiled at her. “I guess we’ll be using your services again then.”

Emma shrugged. “If I’m available. You know I’m in high demand.”

“I bet you are,” he replied, his eyes focused on her kiss swollen lips. 

Mr. Jones’ eyes darted between them and then he nodded. “Well, thank you, Emma. Have a good night.” He turned to exit the living room and then threw over his shoulder. “Oh, and, son, wipe the lipstick off your lips before going to bed.”

Emma and Killian exchanged a look before dissolving into laughter. When the laughter had subsided, Killian held his hand out to her.

“Come on, I’ll walk you home.”

Emma stared at his hand. “I live right next door.”

“It’s good form to accompany a lady home.”

Emma arched her brow. “I am more than capable of taking care of myself, Killian.”

“I can see that,” he replied with a grin. “So how about the truth then? I’d really like to spend a few more minutes with you., Emma.”

Emma smiled and slipped her hand in his. “The truth works.”

“Did I earn that trust yet?” he asked, as they exited his house and headed to hers.

“It’s a good start,” she replied.

They climbed her porch and stopped outside the door.

“This is me,” she said.

“That it is,” he responded, his eyes again going to her lips.

Emma stepped close to him and wrapped her arms around his neck, as she pressed her lips to his. She pulled back a moment later.

“Goodnight, Killian,” she said.

“Goodnight, Emma.”

She then opened the door and walked inside. She offered him one last look over her shoulder before closing the door behind her.

Killian lifted his fingertips to his lips. Yes, he had certainly found his reason to stay.

Emma leaned up against the door and squeezed her eyes closed. No, she had never met a challenge like Killian Jones before and she was beyond grateful he had found his way into her life. 

She could definitely use a little fun in her life. 

………………………………………THE END…………………………………………

Thanks for reading! I’d appreciate any feedback you’d like to give. ~Steph


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